Political parties on left and right vow to support Emmanuel Macron in May's runoff election

French independent candidate Emmanuel Macron and far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen will face one another in a runoff election on May 7, having taken the top two spots in the first round of elections.

“Figures across the political spectrum came together to back Macron, appearing to form a ‘cordon sanitaire’ against the prospect of a Le Pen presidency,” notes HuffPost.

After Sunday’s results were announced, French and European politicians immediately began throwing support behind Macron, fearing that Le Pen’s anti-European Union and anti-immigrant vision would further infect the French electorate.

A similar coalition of opposition formed to soundly defeat Marine Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie, who was then head of the party, back in 2002.

“Macron is a realist who tells the truth. French voters have responded,” says Sylvie Goulard in The Guardian, and “has taken risks on many issues, not least by being proudly pro-EU. We must ensure that it is his vision that triumphs on 7 May.”